Ken Griffey Jr. is Paul's choice in center field

Sunday, June 24,
2007

Paul Hoynes

Plain Dealer Reporter

He had long ago left the Great Northwest when I finally saw
an Indians player hit a ball over the head of the best
center fielder I've ever seen.

Ken Griffey Jr. was wearing Cincinnati red and white and
years of injuries had turned his legs and hamstrings to
shredded wheat. I can't remember the player who did it.
I just remember that I'd never seen it before.

When Griffey played for the Seattle Mariners, under the
concrete roof of the Kingdome, he caught everything. He had
great speed and instincts going back on the ball for a 6-3,
228-pound man. He didn't play deep and there
wasn't a center-field wall that scared him.

Griffey's left arm was strong and accurate. There were
no humps in his throws to the bases, just a long fluid line,
like a bullet train headed into Tokyo with the throttle wide
open.

I always thought his throws should have come with a train
whistle or a contrail. Runners trying to advance on fly
balls to center did so at their own peril.

There are those who say the only reason Seattle still has a
big-league club is because of Griffey. They made him the No.
1 pick in the country in 1987 out of Cincinnati Moeller High
School.

Two years later, Griffey, all of 19, was in the big leagues
to stay. When the Mariners made the postseason in 1995 for
the first time in franchise history, Griffey was the center
of their universe.

He had, and still has, a great swing. It's a lovely,
left-handed swing complete with the upward tilt of a true
power hitter. The right-field wall at the Kingdome, where
Griffey played his best baseball, was 23-feet high and so
close you felt like you could touch it from the press box.
It was 357 feet from the plate to right center and 316 feet
down the line.

The wall was painted pale blue with out-of-town scores
displayed on it. Griffey used his lovely swing to hit homer
after homer over that wall.

The dome's artificial turf was fast and worn. There
always seemed to be a haze in the air and at times ceiling
panels fell to the field. Griffey loved the place.

In one four-year stretch from 1996-99, he hit 209 homers.
Here's the breakdown - 49 in '96, 56 in '97,
56 in '98 and 48 in '99.

Griffey spoke quietly, took batting practice wearing his
cap backward and his spikes untied. He looked impossibly
young and upset traditionalists with the ease in which he
approached the game.

When the Mariners played the Indians, he seemed to spend
more time on their side of the field than his own. He would
talk to Albert Belle, Kenny Lofton and other players while
they stretched near the batting cage. In one series at
Jacobs Field, several hours before game time, Griffey spent
a good 45 minutes in the Indians' locker room talking
to players.

I've never seen another player do that before or
since.

The Mariners moved out of the Kingdome and into Safeco
Field on July 15, 1999.

Safeco Field, with its retractable roof and
pitcher-friendly dimensions, was former manager Lou
Piniella's dream. He had grown weary of the wild 10-7
games inside the Kingdome and longed for a bigger park that
would reward pitching and defense as well as power.

It was not Griffey's favorite place. The heavy sea air
settled into the park at night and killed his drives to
right field.

The new park may have contributed to Griffey wanting out of
Seattle. The Mariners' inability to pay him was a
factor as well, which played a role in Randy Johnson being
traded in 1998 and Alex Rodriguez becoming a free agent in
2000.

The Mariners traded Griffey to Cincinnati after the 1999
season for five players. He was home, back where his father
played for the Big Red Machine, but injuries ravaged him
during his prime years.

Griffey, 37, finally relented and moved to right field this
year. The swing is still there and 600 homers are within
reach this season.

If he had stayed healthy, it might be Griffey instead of
Barry Bonds getting ready to break Hank Aaron's record
this year. If not this year, he would have certainly been a
threat to pass both Bonds and Aaron before retiring.